Friday, March 22, 2013

Most children of the 80s and 90s grew up on a steady TV diet of their
favourite heroes in a half shell. Whether you preferred Michelangelo's
surfer dude attitude or Raphael's lone wolf angst, there was no denying
the allure of that turtle power.

Loosely based on the Mirage Studios comics, the animated series debuted
in 1987 and centred on the adventures of four turtle siblings and their
wise master, Splinter. While the series captured the imagination of kids
throughout North America, it diverged from the original source — opting
instead to change key character elements for the sake of simplicity.

In 1990, New Line Cinema decided to capitalize on this animated
success story by distributing a live action adaptation that would
ideally appeal to both kids and teens, alike. The end result is not so
much a cult classic as a fondly remembered retro rewind — a nostalgic
look back at our childhood, a childhood where we once watched a movie
about walking, talking turtles who struggled to emulate the wisdom
expounded by a life-size rat.

While Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movielacked the mass appeal that enabled films like The Rocky Horror Picture Show — or to a lesser extent, The Goonies — to reach cult status, it still carries a special place in film lore for many of its now-adult fans.

Unlike it's more cartoonish and increasingly ridiculous sequels, The Secret of the Ooze and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III,
the first installment in the franchise is surprisingly dark for what
essentially amounts to kiddie entertainment — it's stylistically
reminiscent of Tim Burton's original Batman, which was released the previous year in 1989.

The premise (as if you didn't already know!) features a quartet of
genetically mutated turtles who are regularly trained in martial arts by
their mentor, Splinter (voiced by Kevin Clash). The teens must learn to
work together as a team in order to defeat Shredder (James Saito) and
his violent ninja gang, the Foot Clan. Along the way the turtles form
close bonds with an investigative journalist named April O'Neil (Judith Hoag) and a cricket bat-wielding street thug named Casey Jones (Elias Koteas).

With its bleak outlook on city living and gang culture, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comes off as more of a film noir for kids — complete with its own version of a femme fatale and the casual (if sometimes grating) use of the term “babe” to describe attractive women.

Yet, despite everything going against it — being a inconsequential live
action film that included men dressed in turtle suits and
remote-controlled Jim Henson puppets — Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles isn't half as bad as you'd think. (Side note: It's thankfully no Garbage Pail Kids, that's for certain; with it's disgusting characters and uncomfortably lame one-liners).

Each turtle are each unique individuals, allowing kids in the audience
to pick and choose which hero they can best identify with. There's
Donatello (voiced by Corey Feldman) who is often depicted as the
intellectual brother due to his aptitude for science and his knack for
technological gadgets. There's Leonardo (voiced by Brian Tochi), the
unofficial leader of the pack who exhibits both patience and discipline.
Or how about Michelangelo (voiced by Robbie Rist), the fun-loving
prankster who adores pizza as much as his nun-chucks. Or, finally, my
personal childhood favourite, Raphael (voiced by Josh Pais), the lone
wolf who exhibits extreme bouts teen angst more than any of his brothers
— and struggles to come to terms with it.

It's dark, noirish elements give children the illusion that they
are watching an exciting, dangerous adult film. I recall feeling a rush
of exhilaration when watching TMNT simply because it looked and
felt like grown up movies my parents would enjoy. Credit is due to
production designer Roy Forge Smith for cashing in on the success of
Burton's bleak Batman while still maintaining his own unique vision of a world inhabited by human-sized turtles and their various nemeses.

For all intents and purposes, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a
hybrid movie: part martial arts action flick, part cartoon-ish
adventure and part romance. You could argue that it has a little
something for everyone — including adults should they decide to revisit
this childhood favourite with their own kids. And why wouldn't they?
After all, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is more than just a
kid's flick — it illustrates the importance of familial bonds and
working together as a team to help the ones you love. And that's total
turtle power!

While surprisingly better than one may expect, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is still bogged down by a silly, often scattered, script — yet still manages to be a nice trip down memory lane. FINAL GRADE: C+

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About Me

I'm a Toronto-based writer and film enthusiast working in digital media. When I'm away from work you can find me with my nose buried in a book, tweeting up a storm or updating this little film blog of mine. I'm also a twice-weekly contributor at Pretty Clever Films and a guest film critic for Next Projection. I'm often bitten by the travel bug and consider Edinburgh my adopted home, which is in keeping with my lifelong obsession with all things Scottish -- with the exception of haggis, of course. You can follow me on Twitter at: @laura_grande13